


do or do not

by tonystarktrash



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Declarations Of Love, F/M, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 2 Compliant, Mutual Pining, Palladium Poisoning, Star Wars - Freeform, i wrote this in 10 minutes ok, tony and pepper watch star wars, tony stark admits he has feelings for pepper potts challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-05
Updated: 2020-02-05
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:27:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22577071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tonystarktrash/pseuds/tonystarktrash
Summary: Pepper waves her hand, giving him one of her patented Tony-Cut-It-Out looks. “Star Trek. Little green muppet thing. Don’t act like you don’t know.”“Star Wars,” Tony groans, leaning against the back of his chair and spinning so that he’s facing the wall.pepper potts has never seen star wars.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark
Comments: 5
Kudos: 60





	do or do not

"Well, you know what Master Yodel says, do or do not…” Pepper looks at him sagely over the edge of the agenda she’s reading.

Tony, already distracted from their discussion by the heavy ache in his chest, is immediately checked out from whatever work he had considered doing today in that moment. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Master Yodel, you know…”

 _Master Yodel. What the fuck?_ “Pepper,” he struggles to keep his voice even. “You mean Master Yoda, right?”

Pepper waves her hand, giving him one of her patented Tony-Cut-It-Out looks. “Star Trek. Little green muppet thing. Don’t act like you don’t know.”

“Star Wars,” Tony groans, leaning against the back of his chair and spinning so that he’s facing the wall. After taking a few dramatic deep, calming breaths, he turns back to face her. “Christ, Pepper, are you doing this to me on purpose?”

Her expression is one of complete innocence, and that hurts Tony more than the side effects of palladium poisoning he’s currently suffering from.

“No? You always respond better when I reference your ner – uh… popular culture. When I reference popular culture.”

Tony laces his fingers together, resting his hands on the desk that had once been his. “Have you ever seen Star Wars, Pepper?”

She shakes her head, and looks up at him sharply when he gets up suddenly from the desk.

“Tonight, my place. I’ll order pizza. Show up after work. You can take the guest room, this is going to take some time.”

“Tony, the _meeting_ ,” Pepper runs a hand over her face, exasperated. “I – you can’t go anywhere! We’re in the conference room in fifteen minutes. They’ll be expecting you.”

Tony is already making his way towards the door of his former office, “Potts. You’re running this joint now. I don’t need to go.” In fact, he’s nursing a pretty terrible headache alongside his general malaise, and can’t wait to get home and pop a few ibuprofens (something stronger, if he’s honest with himself). Then he can take a nap in the hopes that it will give him enough energy for tonight’s movie marathon.

“Tony,” Pepper sounds different, her exasperation fading away to genuine anxiety. He pauses with his hand on the doorknob, glancing over his shoulder at her.

 _God, you’re gorgeous._ Even when she’s gnawing at her bottom lip.

“You’ll be fine, Pep. You run rings around them. Do or do not, there is no try. That’s what you were going for, right? You know I only derail meetings, anyways. Extra olives on your pizza? I’ll order a large, just for you. Pack your overnight bag.”

Pepper is voicing more protests, but Tony is out the door.

* * *

After rustling around in the medicine cabinet in his bathroom, Tony finds a narcotic that will suit his needs, takes three, and throws himself onto his unmade bed, still wearing his shoes.

“Tony?” There’s a gentle touch against his back, and he stirs and lifts his head away from the pillow.

He looks up at Pepper Potts groggily, identifying her only because the sun is shining on her copper hair so brightly that it’s unlikely to be anyone else. _Do I know any other redheads?_

“Oh, fuck, Pep.”

“I can’t believe you – you left me to fend for myself at that meeting just so you could take a nap?” She shakes her head, turning towards the door, and Tony notices the dark leather overnight bag she has slung over her shoulder. _Holy shit, she was actually gonna watch Star Wars with me_.

“Hey, wait, Pep, wait,” he clears his throat as he scrambles off his bed, rubbing at the edges of his reactor through his dress shirt. “Hold on. I just – wasn’t feeling too great earlier, and knew that it would detract from the meeting. Optics, you know that.”

He throws himself in front of the door leading out of his bedroom, his dress shoes squeaking against the shining wood floors as he tries to bodily stop her from leaving. “C’mon. You packed, and everything. I promised you pizza.”

Pepper’s eyes move from his face to the dark tracks along the side of his neck, the makeup he had carefully applied that morning now smeared across his sheets. “Tony…” Her fingers reach out to touch his neck, and he jerks back.

“Hickeys, Potts, you know how it goes.” His back is to her, because he doesn’t want to see the expression of hurt on her face. But it was the only thing he could think of that would be believable. _Except you and her have been dancing on the precipice of something and you just took us back ten feet from the edge. Stupid. Fucking stupid._ Tonight was perhaps supposed to be a jumping off point, though he really shouldn’t try to enter a serious relationship ( _my first since college?_ ) while actively dying.

“Really?” The words are like acid, and Tony’s shoulders tense imperceptibly. “Why not call whoever left them to watch your stupid movie?”

 _Fuck_.

“I want to watch it with you,” he says simply, hoping that his honesty will be enough. “I’ll order the pizza and set everything up. C’mon, Pep?” _Last shot_. He looks at her with those big brown eyes that his mother always acquiesced to – most people did, actually. “It’ll be fun.”

She lets out a long exhalation, so long that Tony can picture her lungs shrivelling up in her chest. “Fine.”

He doesn’t pump his fist in the air in victory, though he wants to, and instead hurries to the living room with energy he hasn’t had for weeks, already on the phone with the pizza place while Pepper sets her overnight bag in the guest room.

Pepper, to her credit, makes it all the way through A New Hope. Towards the end of Empire Strikes Back, Tony looks over at her to make some inane comment, and his mouth closes when he realizes that she’s asleep.

“When’d you conk out, Pep?” He asks her quietly, reaching over to move the plate off her lap – Pepper always insists on using plates, tsking every time Tony reached for another slice of pizza without having a plate resting immediately under it.

He knows it will be hell tomorrow, but he’s not going to leave her sleeping on the couch. Instead, he bends down in front of her and manages to get his arm under her knees, his other arm wrapped around her waist. He heaves her up into his arms, biting back a groan of pain as every cell in his body cries out. _Three months ago I could do this no problem._

Staggering to the guest room, he manages to get Pepper onto the bed without dropping her, though he’s covered in a sheen of sweat. Pepper murmurs something unintelligible as he tucks her in under the duvet, a sleepy smile on her face. Tony wants to kiss her so badly that he almost gives in to the urge – but she’s asleep. He wants their first kiss to be perfect. _Hard to have a first kiss if you’re dead, anyways. You blew it tonight, Stark. Hickeys. Dickhead._

He carefully treads to the door, not wanting to wake her up. _She’s had a busy day. I shouldn’t have screwed her over with that meeting._

“I love you,” he says quietly, just as Princess Leia says the same. Pepper doesn’t even twitch on the bed.

“I know,” says Han Solo. Pepper is silent.

Tony shuts the door to the guest room, leaning back against it once it’s closed.

“Sir, this is your reminder to check your blood toxicity levels,” J.A.R.V.I.S.’ voice is cool, as always, and Tony knows he’s projecting when he imagines that he hears concern.

“Thanks, J. I think I’ll skip tonight.”

“Sir, you instructed me to insist -.”

“Forget it,” Tony says sharply, turning off the television. _Probably my last time watching that_. “It doesn’t matter. You and I both know the number will be bad.” _I love you, I love you, I love you_. “It doesn’t matter.” 

**Author's Note:**

> this was just a lil cute bittersweet thing that has been in my head for a few days so i had to write it to let it out. i didn't proofread this, so apologies for any errors.


End file.
